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Small or Large Shop Bag?

For those who own shop bags, which do you prefer, large or small? Any particular reason why? I'm somewhat of a bag fiend and have been eyeing these for quite awhile now. I have no particular use in mind, so I'm open to either size. I'm just curious how others came to their decision!

For those who own shop bags, which do you prefer, large or small? Any particular reason why? I'm somewhat of a bag fiend and have been eyeing these for quite awhile now. I have no particular use in mind, so I'm open to either size. I'm just curious how others came to their decision!

I have both sizes, and they live in the boot of my car. I most often find myself reaching for the large when I am doing some shopping. The handles make it very comfortable to carry even when fully loaded. And you can set a carton of a dozen eggs flat in the bottom of it!

You surely cannot go wrong with either choice. I myself decided on a small shop bag (the only shop bag I own currently), because I have so many large cloth tote bags that I can't really justify a TB large shop bag purchase ... yet. For me, the small shop bag is the perfect size for light shopping, running errands, or carrying a book during my workday lunch hour. It's a very manageable size when I need to take it on the subway. It also fits under plane seats. It folds up in a smallish pouch and fits nicely in my EDC Smart Alec, ready to be used sponanteously, which happens quite often.

I own both sizes of shop bag and for grocery shopping I prefer the large. I need to be careful, however, not to overload it. If I put too many beverage bottles in it, I can't lift it. The bag holds up ok - it's my body that doesn't. An added note - the nordic dyneema is stiffer than the uv-iberian-wasabe dyneema.

I have both size, I bought my favorite colors of the Small when I thought it would be discontinued.

I mostly use the Large as it has been from the first time I got it, my "I need to load it up with vegetable to eat healthier" bag

It is very roomy, it fits an enormous amount of vegetables.

To give you an idea, once the store clerk packed 2, 5 pounds bags of potatoes in my precious (the Large UV Shop Bag)

It was heavy but miracle of miracles, it didn't hurt my hands, thanks to the Poron Handles.

At home, I unpacked them first and set the precious ( Large UV Shop Bag) aside to make sure it hadn't been messed up by the potatoes bags.

The Small is great as an addition to the EDC (Every Day Carry) bag, to bring lunch and a book in an outdoor area.

To pick up a quart of milk, some cheese and cracker and a bag of garbanzo beans, a bottle of olive oil and some garlic (to make hummus), in short something for a meal or two but that is it.

If I were you I would buy one of each color in Large and Small.

PS: Besides the beautiful UV color what helped the multiple buy was finding out about the nasty stuff they put in the plastic like "store reusable bags".

I forgot to say, buying one in each color is great if one has a special diet for example Kosher: Iberian for meat, Wasabi for vegetables, Nordic for dairy and Steel for everything else (bonus, you can shower the daylight of the bag to make it kosher for passover).
Or, if people of the same family have different diets or one has to shop for one or more Pooches or Kitties.

i use the small as a lunch bag. the large one is for grocery shopping and traveling for when you have bought too much stuff and run out of space in your luggage. it feels just amazing holding the shopping bags in your hands. it just feels right and solid. the poron handles is the deal breaker for me! long live poron!

I have both large and small shop bags (by far my most loved and most used bags!). Large bags (solar!) for weekly grocery shopping always. The baggers reaction to the bags is usually quite varied. Some, not quite sure what to do with them and pack them way too light. Others immediately realize they can fill them with a ton of heavy stuff. It is a rare bagger indeed to see and use the internal side pockets. Most complement us and ask where we got them.

I use the smaller ones usually when I run into a store just to pick up a couple things or if I'm using it as a "tote" for items that don't require the larger size.

sue

Today we went to the grocery store and forgot our bags (first time that has happened in a really long time). We got paper instead and I quickly remembered, environmental concerns aside, my love of these bags for grocery shopping is very deep. The paper bags were a pain and we had twice as many to deal with -- given our kitchen is upstairs, that resulted in an extra trip up and down the stairs.

... Some, not quite sure what to do with them and pack them way too light. Others immediately realize they can fill them with a ton of heavy stuff.

I have the opposite problem - If I hand over a large one they will invariably overfill it ... and then I can't carry it! So I let them use their (biodegradable) bags, then use them for dog waste etc at home ... not as green as some, but not as rough on me either. If I have a lot to buy I take my shopping cart and put the TB bags inside it. The shops are a 5 min walk from my house so I never have a car with me.

I don't shop at the supermarket much but when I do I can use the self checkout and pack my own bags to my desired weight.

Originally Posted by photocat

... We got paper instead and I quickly remembered, environmental concerns aside, my love of these bags for grocery shopping is very deep. The paper bags were a pain and we had twice as many to deal with -- given our kitchen is upstairs, that resulted in an extra trip up and down the stairs.

I don't think any shops here (australia) have gone back to paper. When I was a kid, all the supermarkets had stiff brown paper sacks and I thought they worked pretty well, for car shopping at least which is how we shopped then. They now all use the disposable "singlet" bag. I guess the plastic is still cheaper for them than a recycled paper bag. There are a few chains that charge for bags but the big chains still just hand them out (ie hide the price in the grocery prices).

I don't think any shops here (australia) have gone back to paper. When I was a kid, all the supermarkets had stiff brown paper sacks and I thought they worked pretty well, for car shopping at least which is how we shopped then. They now all use the disposable "singlet" bag. I guess the plastic is still cheaper for them than a recycled paper bag. There are a few chains that charge for bags but the big chains still just hand them out (ie hide the price in the grocery prices).

Thomas Dux uses paper bags but they are nowhere near as efficient as a shop bag! And Thomas Dux isn't really a supermarket.... Do you remember when you could also help yourself to boxes to use instead of bags? The boxes in which all the produce etc was delivered to the supermarket were stacked up in a large bay near the checkouts. We were much better at recycling back in the days when we didn't think about it, but instead were simply more connected to the thrifty ways of earlier generations.

Our wasabi shop bags are so distinctive here in Melbourne that we've had people on checkouts connect my husband with me purely on the basis of the bags we use, even when our respective visits to the shop in question have been days apart!

I have the opposite problem - If I hand over a large one they will invariably overfill it ... and then I can't carry it! So I let them use their (biodegradable) bags, then use them for dog waste etc at home ... not as green as some, but not as rough on me either. If I have a lot to buy I take my shopping cart and put the TB bags inside it. The shops are a 5 min walk from my house so I never have a car with me.

Yes the plastic bags are still useful for many other purposes so we still occasionally get those too. We don't really buy any liquids (we drink filtered water from the tap at home, I make my own almond milk and make the raspberry tea my husband drinks -- much cheaper and better than Snapple and let's not even discuss what is really in their "natural flavorings" - yikes!) I think the liquids are where the weight comes in, so I generally don't have that problem. And the store is much too far for us to walk, so we are in a car but do get our workout taking the shopping up the steps :

Originally Posted by daisy

I don't think any shops here (australia) have gone back to paper. When I was a kid, all the supermarkets had stiff brown paper sacks and I thought they worked pretty well, for car shopping at least which is how we shopped then. They now all use the disposable "singlet" bag. I guess the plastic is still cheaper for them than a recycled paper bag. There are a few chains that charge for bags but the big chains still just hand them out (ie hide the price in the grocery prices).

Wow - that is interesting. Had no idea. When I was a kid the paper bags were much thicker and sturdier than they are now. The ones now are fairly thin but they have paper handles, which make it easier unless the baggers overfill and then they break -- hence them not putting too much in each bag these days. Our store will either give us a 5 cent credit for each reusable bag we bring or donate it to a food bank -- our choice when we check out.

As others have stated, I have both, and I find them both useful. I use my Large Shop Bags for grocery runs, library runs, as a pool bag, as a car bag for several kids to share. I use the small when popping into a store for just a few things like the pharmacy, or craft store, when I have a medium sized knitting project, as a toiletry bag when we go camping, and when I want to give the kids individual car activity bags on longer trips.

The large is by no means too big, but if heavily loaded up like with books, I need to practice good ergonomics to lift it properly. The regular size has never been a challenge to handle. It sometimes seems almost too anemic to handle some purchases though. I had a panic moment the other day in Best Buy when I saw the Wii U we preordered. It did fit into the small shop bag I brought in, but there was no hiding it from the kids as I walked out of the store. The surprise was spoiled, but it wasn't the end of the world. I wouldn't want to do without either size.